A highlights video of a top Saudi football team's latest match reportedly went viral on the internet, because a woman was spotted in the crowd.
Following Saudi side Al Hilal's 2-1 defeat to Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a seemingly humdrum clip from the match, showing a foul by an Al-Ain player on an opponent, has been viewed nearly 400,000 times on YouTube.
But, instead of the foul sparking the large number of views it is apparently the fact that a veiled woman was shown remonstrating in the crowd, The Daily Express reported.
Although women are banned from attending football games in Saudi Arabia itself, because the match, a semi-final of the Asian Football Confederation's Champions League, was hosted in the UAE, women were able to attend.
Many other women also formed part of the 24,000-strong crowd at Al-Ain's stadium, with a number seen cheering on Saudi's Al Hilal.
Among more than 1,000 to have commented underneath the YouTube video, with one user stating that women aren't interested in football, so why do they go to a stadium to watch a live match.
Another user posted that does this woman not have a man, adding that her place is in the house.
However, others took issue with these views, with one user posting that conversations about women's rights are long overdue in Saudi Arabia, adding that of course this lady can attend a football match, and shame on all of them who presume to tell her or other women what they can or can not do.
The Saudi government is believed to currently be considering allowing women admittance to football matches in the country's own stadia, albeit in segregated areas, the report added.
